DEMETER MOVES IN MYSTERIOUS WAYS? THE NARRATIVE MOTIVATION AND TRADITIONAL ARTISTRY OF THE HOMERIC HYMN TO DEMETER

Abstract This paper reasserts that the narrative of the Homeric Hymn to Demeter is logically coherent, contrary to the common belief among scholars who often claim that the actions of Demeter herself in Eleusis are unmotivated. I argue on the contrary that the narrative of the Eleusis Episode can clearly be seen to be motivated in two regards: firstly, in terms of the intentions of the poet, who is demonstrably deploying and skilfully intertwining traditional story patterns of hospitality and wrathful withdrawal, the extent of which has previously not been fully realized; and secondly, aspects of the in-world motivation of Demeter as a character have been overlooked by past scholarship. The analysis of these aspects of the Hymn ’s narrative reveals the poet’s skill in harmonizing the internal and external motivations when creating an innovative version of the myth which seems to differ from other known versions.